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OPINION PAGE - JULY 7, 1999 - DANIELSVILLE, GEORGIA

Letters to the Editor The Madison County Journal July 7, 1999 Says 'The Boss' runs the county Dear editor: With much interest I have read the letters from George Boutwell that you printed. He is correct in just about everything he says. Politics are dirty in Madison County and the man he calls "The Boss" really is behind it all. Even if Mr. Boutwell does not give his name, I know who "The Boss" is and I know some things about him Mr. Boutwell does not seem to know. An evil, conniving, greedy man. Mr. Boutwell was correct when he said "The Boss" is behind our dirty politics. He is behind that story Mr. Boutwell keeps referring to about the cows belonging to John Scoggins being killed. It is true no cows were killed, yet the articles in the papers made it seem as if Louie Clark was responsible for killing the cows. "The Boss" is also behind the recall efforts against three of the commissioners. Not much was published against it until Mr. Boutwell's letters began to appear in our local papers. Either people don't know the truth or they are afraid of "The Boss." "The Boss" has left a trail of broken men in his wake. He brought down Louie Clark with his evil lies. He set out to destroy Ken Clark, Jack Fortson and Patsy Pierce because they were responsible for firing him when he sided with Wesley Nash and would not give the legal advice they asked for. He got rid of Clark and Fortson. Now he is behind the attack on Patsy Pierce. I thought he was smarter than that, but he used the same tactics against Louie Clark when he had that article printed in the paper that Mrs. Pierce had something to do with defacing the signs. The so-called "closed meetings," which "The Boss" has used so effectively, is a joke. Guess who attended those closed meetings? "The Boss"! So did Wesley Nash! "The Boss" was there! If the meetings were illegal, why did he not advise the commissioners the meetings were illegal? And why have recall efforts against only three of the commissioners? The answer is obvious. Those are the three who fired him from his job. Revenge. Somehow, "The Boss" needs to be stopped. It is left up to the voters. We have a choice. We can vote for a recall of Patsy Pierce and allow "The Boss" to continue to run this county, or we can stand behind Mrs. Pierce. I, for one, will not allow my vote to be used for "The Boss's" evil purposes. Sincerely, Paul Bullock An open letter to Commissioner Pierce, Mr. Mattox and the voters of Madison County Dear editor: If either of you (Patsy Pierce or Jerry Mattox) think you are helping Madison County's political reputation, you're both wrong. It's time to move from personal attacks to attacking the business of the county. Commissioner Pierce, this is the first day of your remaining term. Admit to your constituents that perhaps you voted for issues that you wish you had not, i.e., the doubling of your salary, Jack Fortson's drawing retirement while still a commissioner, the lawsuit against the chairman which appeared to stem from a personal dislike of him, the misuse of your fax machine and any other issue which disappointed and enraged your constituents. Instead of trying to get even, pledge to bury the hatchet and work with the entire board and citizens of Madison County. Any elected official knows that hindsight is great, so please admit that perhaps you followed the wrong advice and the wrong commissioners' recommendations in your voting. Mr. Mattox, perhaps you have the best interest of Madison County in your heart. If so, please sit down with Commissioner Pierce, discuss what your problem is with her and see if she is willing to listen to your complaints, and on the other hand, listen to her complaints about you. You are two adults who hopefully want the best for Madison County. If that is a common goal, at least talk to each other instead of all these lawsuits, etc. Recalls are sticky issues, and in District 3's case, the recall effort has become a circus in which people are becoming even more disenchanted with their commissioner and her shenanigans and with Mr. Mattox and his dogmatic ways. However, I commend the constituents of District 4. I read nothing or heard nothing where ex-commissioner Clark was ever personally attacked. This shows great integrity on the part of the citizens of District 4. District 5's campaign was a little more vocal about ex-commissioner Fortson, but still aboveboard. I was taken by surprise and alarm when I read Superior Court Judge George Bryant's comment in the paper that he agreed "that this nonsense about the meetings wasn't sufficient." If I remember correctly, another Superior Court judge and the Georgia Supreme Court thought these illegal meetings were sufficient to grant a recall. I thought judges were to uphold the law and not prejudge. I think citizens are becoming more aware and knowledgeable about their county politics. However, nothing will change until more people get involved in county politics, either by running for an office, helping candidates with their campaign, voting, and knowing what is going on politically in the county. If a person runs a campaign and loses, at least the citizens had a choice. If the cream does not rise to the top, it won't take voters long to recognize that fact. Don't be afraid to get involved. Take a stand and make Madison County politics exciting, honest and open. If we work together, Madison County will be one of the best counties politically in the state. You do make a difference. Sincerely, Leigh Dove Hull

Column By Marilyn Lawson-Bridges The Madison County Journal July 7, 1999 Coming of age Old men hair - now there's a subject I must honestly admit I have never given much thought to. At least, not until this week. "Old men hair" was brought to my attention by a friend who thinks he may be suffering with this particular condition. My friend is only in his early thirties, so I wondered to myself, "Just when can one expect to be attacked with this hair problem, and why does it prefer to affect only males?" The seriousness with which he described the condition made me believe he knew his facts. And so I asked him to "define old men hair" to me. From his answers, I determined that "old men hair" begins with a haircut. It is the time when a man says he needs a haircut, yet, in reality, his hair is not really that long. My friend best described it by saying he knew he had it when he went for a haircut and his hair began to immediately bush out. The vision of being in the barber's chair and having an immediate "swoosh" and ending up with the bushy hairdo made me laugh. However, my friend did not think it was funny. Certainly, my curiosity has me checking out the hair on every male over thirty. But would I recognize "old men hair" when I saw it? Is "old men hair" the equivalent of hot flashes? Does this come hand in hand with the urge to buy a red car and ride down the road with the radio blaring "Born to be Wild" on the oldie's station? I am still clueless, but a random survey turned up to show that some guys agreed with my friend and admitted they too had been the subject of "the bush-out" from a haircut. While others refused to even acknowledge the existence of such a condition as "old men hair." I am guessing this subject is personal between the gentleman and his barber, kinda like the lady's beautician and hair color. I think my friend is worrying for no reason. Some of the nicest hair I have ever seen was on the heads of older men. So this makes me believe being stricken with "old men hair" can't be all that bad. I would like to tell my friend not to fret, but to enjoy this merely for what it is, a simple passage of age. After all, only his barber knows for sure. Marilyn Lawson-Bridges is a reporter for The Madison County Journal.

Column Frank Gillespie The Madison County Journal July 7, 1999 Frankly Speaking Please, dear readers, don't take this column to be a criticism of you. I know that none of my readers would ever do the things I am about to describe. Some of you may think that these activities are not important, and you should not be concerned about them. I hope to convince you otherwise. My topic today is wasteful shopping habits. Each of you have, at one time or another, complained about the high cost of groceries. You are right. Things cost more than they should. A part of that extra cost is due to the damage to merchandise done by shoppers. Any store must make a profit in order to pay wages, utilities and rent, and reward those investors who risk their money to provide you with the goods you seek. Anything that adds to the cost of doing business must be passed on to you, the customer. If the merchandise is damaged, soiled, stolen or otherwise abused, you will pay extra to cover the loss. It never fails to amaze me the dumb things people will do in a store. For example, remember those ads for freezer bags that zip the colored strips together? Blue and yellow make green, the pitch man says. Well, some people just have to open the package and try it to see if it works. Naturally, the next customer will refuse to purchase the package that was ripped open. And the next box of cereal you buy will be a penny higher to make up the loss. You see someone rip a lipstick out of the little pack, throw the pack on the floor and put the lipstick in her pocket. It doesn't matter, you think. It costs so little that a big store like this will never miss it. You are wrong. Add a penny a pound to your potatoes. Someone picks up a peach from the fruit counter and eats it while shopping. He tosses the pit behind a display without thinking. Add a penny to that tomato you are considering. Even a careless change of mind cost you money. Someone went to the meat counter and selected a pack of ground beef. As they shop, they decide they do not have enough money to buy the beef, so they take it out of their cart and leave in on the nearest shelf. Some time later, an employee of the store finds the beef. What is he to do with it? He has no idea how long it has been there. It may have become too warm to be safe. He has no choice but to throw it away. Your pork chops just went up a couple of pennies per pound. You may think that these petty thefts or careless acts in a grocery store are harmless. You believe that the losses come from the company's profits. You are wrong. The person who pays for other people's sloppy shopping habits is - YOU. Frank Gillispie is founder of The Madison County Journal.

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